Having trouble getting registered or subscribing? Email us at info@kysportsreport.com or Private Message CitizenBBN and we'll get you set up!

  • Avery Williamson: UK needed change


    Avery Williamson & Cody Quinn v MSU

    Linebacker Avery Williamson was Kentucky’s leading tackler last season, but the Cats won just two games and now have a new head coach in Mark Stoops.

    “We needed a change to get ourselves going. Really, a lot of guys were just down in spirits. We needed it bad,” said Williamson of the coaching change. “It can happen with any team. I am feeling good about what we are doing now. I am very confident in these coaches and what they are doing. It’s a great staff and they are going to get the best out of all these players on our team

    “I know our talent was better than a two-win team last year. We had a lot of talent. I just don’t feel like we had enough of it. We just needed a full team commitment. Some guys were not as into the program as they should have been. You have to get everybody to buy into it, and guys are doing that now. We are getting better as a team and guys are coming with the mentality to get better every practice. That’s why I think the change (in coaches) was good.”

    Williamson, who had 135 tackles in 12 games last year, has no problem proving himself to Stoops or defensive coordinator D.J. Eliot, who also coaches linebackers.

    “You should come out each year feeling like you have to prove yourself no matter what. I feel like as a player and a senior, I have to prove myself to these coaches but each year I feel like I have to prove myself again that I am getting better and developing as a player,” Williamson said.

    Williamson had to do the same thing when he got to UK after leading Milan (Tenn.) to consecutive 14-1 seasons and two state championship game appearances. He made 125 tackles with one interception as a senior and 119, including 21 for loss, as a junior. He was one of the top 15 ranked players in Tennessee, but he did not receive an abundance of major college attention.

    “It does come back to that just like it did in high school,” Williamson said. “You have to have a chip on your shoulder and set out to prove yourself every day in practice and games as well.

    “I am still fighting. This summer I am going to work out hard. This spring I am getting better and working on fundamentals and things. There is always something you have to get better at. You can never be at your best.”

    Yet Williamson was always confident he could not only play at Kentucky, but confident he could be a huge playmaker as he was last year when he got his chance to shine after playing in 25 games his first two season without making a start.

    “I knew I had the work ethic to get me there. I knew if you worked hard enough, it’s going to happen. I was just confident in myself. I worked through high school to be the best and knew in college I would not be any different and would work just as hard,” Williamson said.

    When he returns home now, some people admit “I never thought you could do it” and become a SEC standout.

    “Sometimes I didn’t think I could do it but I kept working until I got to a SEC school,” Williamson said Friday after practice. “I go home about four times a year. I went hope spring break and got to see everybody. Probably go home in May again. I do have lot of friends there. Now they see you on TV and lot of people think it is cool. We have not had a guy (from Milan) play in the SEC since the 1990’s. It is a really big deal around my area.”

    He says if he somehow made it to the NFU, “it would be crazy” in his hometown.

    “I dreamed about playing in the NFL, but I try not to get too far ahead of myself,” Williamson said. “I am motivating myself right now for the fall and thinking about getting this team back on a high note and finishing with a high note. I feel once I get done with the season, I will focus more on the NFL.”

    Currently Williamson is continuing to be a team leader that Stoops knows he needs.

    “I always work so hard and guys kind of expect you to be a leader. It doesn’t come that easy. We have a lot of guys on the team that are hard to deal with sometimes, but you have to be tough and stand up to them,” Williamson said. “If they see you doing the right thing it will make the guys look up to you even more.”

    “I’m not out there right now trying to be a leader. I can’t yell because I am messing up myself. If you think too much and try to impress coaches, you might mess up more.”

    Williamson believes the defensive system Stoops and Eliot brought with them from Florida State is “simpler” than the one defensive coordinator Rick Minter used last year at UK.

    “Less communication is being made, which is better and helps us out because you don’t have to make as many calls. Communication is probably the biggest thing that is different,” Williamson said.

    He said the new staff’s energy is contagious.

    “They really get after us and get us going. They don’t want any sluggish pace from drill to drill. They want everybody moving fast,” Williamson said. “We are just fed up and sick of losing. We really have a statement to prove to all these other teams in the SEC and everybody that we can compete in the SEC and that is what we are going to do.”

    He says the $110 million in Commonwealth Stadium renovations recently approved have also helped team morale.

    “It is cool. Really cool. I just hope I get to see a lot of stuff get done,” Williamson said. “I think it is great for the program that we are going to get stuff a lot of other schools already have. I am glad they are moving this program to the next level and now we have to do our part on the field, too.”
    Comments 3 Comments
    1. MickintheHam's Avatar
      MickintheHam -
      I wish Avery the very best. Thanks Larry.
    1. dan_bgblue's Avatar
      dan_bgblue -
      Love his attitude and it is not for show. Thanks for the read!
    1. Kacat's Avatar
      Kacat -
      Fantastic young man. Wish they had redshirted him his FR year.
  • KSR Twitter Feed

  • Recent Forum Posts

    Harlow

    Re: Oakland v UK hall of fame

    See ya next guys with a new coach

    Harlow 03-22-2024, 08:36 AM Go to last post
    Darrell KSR

    Re: Oakland v UK hall of fame

    I'll grade the first point. I wonder who had Oakland winning?

    I kid, kid. Since I made the post, I guess the least I can do is go ahead and

    Darrell KSR 03-21-2024, 09:18 PM Go to last post
    DanISSELisdaman

    Re: Oakland v UK hall of fame

    UK by 19
    Reeves 26
    320
    21
    41%

    DanISSELisdaman 03-21-2024, 06:25 PM Go to last post
    Harlow

    Re: Oakland v UK hall of fame

    No problem buddy

    Harlow 03-21-2024, 05:08 PM Go to last post
    Darrell KSR

    Re: Oakland v UK hall of fame

    Thanks, Harlow--I corrected it to 22. No idea, of course, and watch 18 be the right answer lol. Anyway, I appreciate the heads up.

    Darrell KSR 03-21-2024, 04:30 PM Go to last post